Vikings storm past Central 69-57 with big second half

Junior forward Ian Robertson scored 17 points and hauled in nine rebounds as the Cape boys’ basketball team rode a torrid second half to shoot to a 69-57 comeback win at Sussex Central Jan. 12 in Georgetown.

The Vikings made 18 of their 25 field goal attempts (72 percent) after intermission to erase a seven-point halftime deficit and secure their fifth consecutive victory over Central. 

Four players scored in double figures for a balanced Cape squad, which improved to 5-4 overall and 5-1 in the Henlopen North. Junior forward Randy Rickards tallied 14 points, six boards, four steals and three blocks, while junior guard Izaiah Dadzie poured in 12 points on 2-for-4 shooting from three-point land and dished out a season-best four assists. Freshman point guard Cory Barnes joined his teammates in double figures and delivered one of his most well-rounded performances with 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists. 

“My shot hasn’t really been falling, so I just kept going to the basket to get going,” said Robertson, who made seven of his 10 field goal tries. “Once I see one go into the basket, the rim gets bigger. I just focused on playing hard tonight.” 

Down 29-22 to a young, pesky Central side, which led for the entire first half, the Vikings came out caffeinated in the third period. They outscored the Knights 13-2 in the first 2:06 of the quarter and went up 35-31 on a three-point play by Barnes at the 5:54 mark. Robertson scored five points during the run, including a three-pointer from the top of the key that bounced high off the rim before rattling in. 

Sophomore guard Jahlier Pettyjohn kept Central in it, answering the Vikings’ flurry with three three-pointers in a two-minute span, but Cape fired right back with an 8-0 run to end the third. Rickards scored twice during the spurt, finishing strong off the glass on a Dadzie feed just before the horn to put the Vikings up 47-42 entering the final frame.

The fourth quarter saw the Knights trim the margin to 54-53 when Pettyjohn converted a lay-in on the break with just under five minutes left, but Robertson wouldn’t let Cape fall behind. He caught a pass from Dadzie and lofted in a five-footer from the left baseline despite a Central foul, later converting the free throw to expand the Vikings’ lead to four. After a Pettyjohn jumper, Cape sprinted away thanks to 12 unanswered points down the stretch, including four apiece from Rickards and Barnes. The Vikings drilled their final five field goals of the night, all of them easy lay-ins.

Barnes praised his team for its resilience. 

“They jumped out on us early and the crowd got into it,” Barnes said. “At halftime, coach told us to come out with more energy and not to play down to our competition. We fought through adversity and came back.”

Coach Steve Re said that after a lackluster first half, his Vikings morphed into an entirely new team.

“Our intensity level, our energy, and our willingness to do what we’re asked to do [improved in the second half],” Re said. “We played with the proper concepts and the proper energy. Energy and attitude are everything for us … We made youthful mistakes all night, but the energy was better.”      

Little-used forward Robert Mitchell got his first serious run for Cape and made a huge impact. The 6-foot-4, 285-pound football stud scored five points and collected two rebounds in seven minutes of action, providing the Vikings with a much-needed spark when things looked bleak in the first half.

Mitchell, who had played just two minutes all year before the game, made the most of his opportunity. 

“It’s fun to be out there helping the team out,” he said. “I’m here to play big, rebound and get a bucket every now and then when I have to.”

Cape shot 61 percent from the floor on the night, its highest mark since it connected on 63 percent of its tries at Central last season.

Senior wing Jerry Harden and senior forward Noah Piper closed the scorebook for the Vikings with eight and two points, respectively, while senior guard Rasheed Woods grabbed four rebounds.

Pettyjohn notched a game-high 18 points for Central (1-7, 0-6 Henlopen North), while fellow sophomore Ryhlee Matthews contributed 16 points and four steals.

The Vikings flexed their muscles on the glass, out-rebounding the Knights 32-21, and also showed their willingness to share the ball by assisting on 13 of their 26 field goals.

Cape returns to the court Tuesday, Jan. 17, for a 5:30 p.m. tip at Delcastle.